


when you wish upon a star

by LuciferCaelestis



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, Matt is So Done with them, Pining Shiro (Voltron), everyone knows they're pining for each other except them, not that he knows it yet...
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-01
Updated: 2018-03-01
Packaged: 2019-03-25 15:21:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13837551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuciferCaelestis/pseuds/LuciferCaelestis
Summary: Shiro gets a video message from Keith while he's on the way to Kerberos, but there's so much teasing. So much.





	when you wish upon a star

**Author's Note:**

> something happy for my boy shiro's birthday for once

"Shiro!"

Shiro turned after the third time he heard Matt call his name, dragging his eyes away from the sight of Saturn's rings to indulge in whatever shit Matt was up to this time.

He remembered the last time Matt had gotten bored of listening to his playlist again and tried to pick a fight with Shiro (he called it a debate) over the superiority of Star Trek compared to Star Wars.

Shiro, being a die hard Star Wars fan, hadn’t been able to resist taking the bait. Every single time.

It had ended in disaster, even dragging Commander Holt into the fight, who'd unequivocally voted for Battlestar Galactica and threatened to space them if they continued.

"You've got a message," Matt said in a sing-song voice, dragging out the last syllable.

"From who?" Shiro asked. The Garrison had already sent their requisite video check up a few days ago, it was too early for another one, and he had no family left to send him messages.

He knew that Matt and Commander Holt looked forward to getting messages from their family, Mrs Holt and a little sister named Katie that Matt was ever fond of bragging about.

"Your little shadow, of course!" Matt exclaimed triumphantly.

His eyes widened in wonder. "Keith sent me a message?" He didn't bother correcting Matt's epithet for Keith; he knew they were friends in their own right, but Matt had insisted on calling Keith that after he'd seen the way Keith followed him around, and Keith had never protested the nickname, so Shiro left it alone.

He hadn't hesitated to put Keith down as next of kin, but he'd never thought Keith would use that to send him a message, even as his heart rose at the thought.

“Is Keith that nice boy you introduced us to, the day of the launch? You seemed very close,” Commander Holt piped in.

Matt rolled his eyes. “If by very close you mean Shiro wants to marry him and have his space babies, then yeah, they're 'very close'. But they’re hopeless. They were still dancing around each other when we left and I figure they're still gonna be dancing around each other ten years from now.”

Shiro sputtered. Yes, he liked Keith but he wouldn't describe it quite that way. “Space babies, Matt?” Shiro asked, not knowing what to say about the rest of the things Matt had said.

“Shut up, Shiro, I've been your third wheel for a year now and I don't even get the emotional satisfaction of seeing you guys being disgustingly happy with each other."

"Why do you call him Shiro's little shadow?” Commander Holt asked, finally drawn into the conversation.

"Because when Shiro made friends with him, after weeks of near stalking him I might add, you couldn't find Shiro without Keith following beside him, looking at him like he hung the stars. Not to mention, I'd been Shiro's friend longer but if I really needed to find Shiro, Keith was the only one who could find him," Matt complained jokingly.

"I see... and you say they haven't started dating yet?" Commander Holt asked, curious.

Matt nodded solemnly, hiding a grin. 

"Son, you should have more faith in Shiro. I'm sure he isn't nearly as hopeless as you think he is,” he answered. Shiro was about to sigh in relief that at least _someone_ thought better of him when Commander Holt continued, "He'll take 5 years at most."

“Commander!” Shiro protested. “I don’t–“

“I thought I told you to call me Sam, son,” Commander Holt– no, _Sam_ – interrupted him gently. “Carry on, Matt."

Matt shook his head slowly in mock despair. "You haven't seen them together, dad. There's so much pining there a forest would be jealous, and the saddest thing is, I don’t think they even realise it."

Shiro could only watch in horror as they just discussed his non-existent love life right in front of him.

When he remembered the reason they'd gotten onto this topic in the first place, he jumped at the chance to exit the conversation.

As Matt and Sam watched him leave for the comm station to watch Keith's message with an excited light in his eyes and a skip in his step, it was obvious that they were both thinking the same thing: _"Hopeless."_  
  
~  
  
Shiro couldn't help brushing down his hair and taking deep breaths before he remembered that it was a pre-recorded message, not a video call. He spared a moment to hope that Matt and Commander Holt hadn't seen him do that before he cued the video to start.

Reflexively, he smiled when he saw Keith's face appear on the screen.

"Hey Shiro. I don't know what you said to Iverson to get him to allow this but he didn't even blink when I requested it, just sighed really tiredly for some reason."

He was relieved to hear that his talk with Iverson had worked and that his paperwork had gone through without a problem.

"Anyway, I beat your high score in that Saturn sim, the one you talked about still hanging into by the time you got back, so you owe me a space rock," Keith raised an eyebrow, smirking playfully. "You should be nearing Saturn by now too, right? Tell me what it's like later, I want to hear all about it."

It was good to see that Keith had been doing well in his absence, Shiro couldn't wait to see how much he'd advanced by the time Shiro got back.

"I almost forgot why I'm making this video in the first place. I'm not sure if you'll remember out there, or if you're busy with other things, but it's your birthday here so...uh, happy birthday," Keith said, looking away from the camera.

Shiro had to pause the video for a second, just to process the fact that Keith remembered his birthday and taking the time to wish Shiro for it too. How long had it been since someone had wished him a happy birthday? Long enough that he couldn't remember at least.

How he wished he could be with Keith right now on Earth. Maybe with Keith, his birthday didn't have to be a non-event, or a day that reminded him of disappointment and resignation.

It made him feel hopeful.

"I can't exactly give you a present right now for obvious reasons," Keith continued, a rare smile growing on his face,"so you're going to have to come back for it, alright? No excuses."

Spending his birthday with Keith would be a dream come true after so long spending it alone or not even bothering to remember it.

"I can't really talk for long, but I just wanted to say that I miss you, Takashi. Come back safe, I'll be waiting."

How was it, he asked himself, wiping tears from his face, that even after a year, Keith was still finding ways to make him cry?

Maybe Matt was right. He really was in too deep. But honestly, had he ever really stood a chance?

His birthday had never been an important part of his life, just a marker of getting older, but maybe with Keith, it wouldn't have to be that way.

He had no cake or candles, but there were stars all around him, so he indulged in the childish thought of making a wish anyway: that this time next year, he would be with Keith.

**Author's Note:**

> shiro waking up with a nightmare post-voltron, shaking keith awake: keith, zarkon isn’t my father is he??? keith, wake up, this is important!!!


End file.
